Determination of Minimum Horizontal Curve Radius Used in the Design of

Transportation Structures, Depending on the Limit Value of Comfort

Criterion Lateral Jerk
Ahmet Sami KILIN and Tamer BAYBURA, Turkey

Key words: Jerk (Rate of change of acceleration), Horizontal Curve, Alignment Geometry,
Vehicle Dynamics, Standards

SUMMARY
Because of depending on social, cultural and economic developments increasing
transportation requirements, as a result of technological developments, vehicles becoming
faster and more comfortable and parallel to all developments further increase in the value of
time, the significance of road projects have been increasing day by day. Constructing of fast,
safe, comfortable and economical transportation systems is an important expectation among
the people. To meet the expectations, during the design of transportation structures such as
highway, railway, high speed railway, geometric standarts related to the project should be
investigated very detailed. The correct selection and implementation of standards is of great
importance. Horizontal and vertical curves used in transportation systems are the critical
sections on the alignment. An important issue to be addressed in order to increase road safety
and comfort during the design of horizontal and vertical curves is determination of the
minimum curve radius affected by many factors. While designing of horizontal alignment,
smaller than the calculated boundary value of minimum curve radius cannot be used.
Therefore, one of the most important boundary values is the minimum curve radius which
should be considered in terms of design. Minimum curve radius which is used as design
criterion on the horizontal alignment can be derived on the basis of sight lengths, the limit
values of superelevation, the limit values of lateral acceleration and the limit values of Jerk
(rate of change of acceleration). Evaluation criterion of the alignment geometry in terms of
comfort is Jerk. On the horizontal curve, lateral acceleration formed by centrifugal force
adversely affects the road safety and reduces vehicle travel comfort. Jerk is defined as the
lateral acceleration changing per unit time occurring in horizontal curves. During the curve
design, to take into account of Jerk criterion in terms of road safety and comfort is extremely
important. In this study, minimum curve radius used as design criterion is derived to take into
account of Jerk criterion that can be effective to design comfortable and safety roads which
are suitable for road-vehicle dynamic.

TS06G - Engineering Surveying, Machine Control and Guidance, 5563

Ahmet Sami KILIN and Tamer BAYBURA
Determination of Minimum Horizontal Curve Radius Used in the Design of Transportation Structures,
Depending on the Limit Value of Comfort Criterion Lateral Jerk
FIG Working Week 2012
Knowing to manage the territory, protect the environment, evaluate the cultural heritage
Rome, Italy, 6-10 May 2012

1/11

Determination of Minimum Horizontal Curve Radius Used in the Design of

Transportation Structures, Depending on the Limit Value of Comfort
Criterion Lateral Jerk
Ahmet Sami KILIN and Tamer BAYBURA, Turkey

1. INTRODUCTION
In this study as distinct from other studies, minimum horizontal curve radius is derived using
the limit value of lateral Jerk. The equations of minimum curve radius related to lateral Jerk
are derived by analyzing the equations of lateral Jerk in the literature. Minimum curve radius
are calculated by using the equations derived and calculated minimum curve radius are
compared with the other minimum curve radius which were calculated with respect to
different criterion.

2. DETERMINATION OF MINIMUM CURVE RADIUS

One of the most important boundary values which should be taken into account while
designing horizontal alignment is minimum curve radius. Curves combined the different
directions of the alignment is critical section of the road. While designing of the road,
minimum curve radius must be selected very well for safe and comfortable driving.
Minimum curve radius can be calculated by various methods. The main difference that
separates these methods each other is the use of different parameters during the formulation.
Minimum curve radius can be determined to take into account superelevation, lateral
acceleration, sight distance and lateral Jerk.
2.1 Minimum Curve Radius based on the limit Value of Superelevation
Minimum curve radius can be derived to take into account the limit value of superelevation.
Equation of minimum horizontal curve radius depend on the superelevation value is given by
American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials A Policy on Geometric
Design of Highways and Streets (AASHTO Green Book, 2001) as follows:
V
R
 =
(1)
127(0,01e
 + f
 )
For railways; equation of minimum curve radius based on the superelevation was expressed as
follows: (Baykal,2009).
b  u
 V
R
 =
(2)
127,14 u

TS06G - Engineering Surveying, Machine Control and Guidance, 5563
Ahmet Sami KILIN and Tamer BAYBURA
Determination of Minimum Horizontal Curve Radius Used in the Design of Transportation Structures,
Depending on the Limit Value of Comfort Criterion Lateral Jerk
FIG Working Week 2012
Knowing to manage the territory, protect the environment, evaluate the cultural heritage
Rome, Italy, 6-10 May 2012

2/11

Where;
: Minimum curve radius (m)
: Velocity (km/s)
: Maximum superelevation
: Maximum allowable side friction factor
: Maximum superelevation (m)
: The average speed (km/h)
b
: Width of the railway line (m)
2.2 Minimum Curve Radius based on the Limit Value of Lateral Acceleration
The vehicles entered horizontal curve from the linear section of the road move under the
influence of various forces. These forces are the centrifugal force, the force created by the
weight of the vehicle, lateral friction force and lateral acceleration force.
The change of velocity with respect to time is called acceleration. The lateral acceleration is
created by centrifugal force. Minimum curve radius can be derived to take into account the
limit value of the lateral acceleration. It was derived for the horizontal geometry as follows:
(Baykal, 2009, p.351)

For highways;
R
 =

For railways;
R
 =

V

12,96(1 + e
 a + e
 g)

(3)

b  u
 V 
(4)
12,96(b a + u
 g)

Where; aY: Lateral acceleration

According to German RAL guide (Richtlinien fr die Anlage von Landstrassen) the
maximum lateral acceleration value tolerated by passengers into the car is the value of
1.47m/s2. Some literature values of lateral acceleration are as follows:
For highways; ay: 2,45 m/s2 (Schofield; 2001), ay: 1,47 m/s2 (Umar; Yayla; 1997).
For railways; ay: 1,22 m/s2 (Schofield; 2001), ay: 0,80 m/s2 (Esveld; 1989), ay: 1,0 m/s2
(Frstberg; 2000), ay: 0,65 m/s2 (Megyeri; 1993).

TS06G - Engineering Surveying, Machine Control and Guidance, 5563

Ahmet Sami KILIN and Tamer BAYBURA
Determination of Minimum Horizontal Curve Radius Used in the Design of Transportation Structures,
Depending on the Limit Value of Comfort Criterion Lateral Jerk
FIG Working Week 2012
Knowing to manage the territory, protect the environment, evaluate the cultural heritage
Rome, Italy, 6-10 May 2012

3/11

2.3 Minimum Curve Radius based on the Limit Value of Lateral Jerk
The change of the acceleration with respect to time is called Jerk. The concept of Jerk is
defined as the third derivative of distance (Schot, 1978). The Jerk is also called the second
acceleration (German: Ruck, Beschleunigungsaenderug; French: Saccade). In terms of road
safety and comfort, Jerk is an important design criterion. Jerk is a value that used to determine
the voyage comfort and is known as comfort criterion while designing of road.
The lateral Jerk is defined as the change of lateral acceleration created by the centrifugal force
on the horizontal curve with respect to time. For the safety and comfortable driving, lateral
Jerk must be below the predetermined limit values. Lateral Jerk was defined to take into
account all factors (Horizontal geometry, vertical geometry, all motion model) as follows
(Baybura, 2001):
d
u V 
d
k  V  u
Z =
3
 + 

+ 

u + b
d

b1 + W  d
u + b 
bV

 
  
    
d

 (5)



 +
b1 + W  b1 + W    +
 d

      d
2   





/
b1 + W d
b1 + W 

Where;
Z Lateral Jerk (m/s3)
V Design speed (m/s)
b Horizontal width of road platform (m), for railways; width of the railway line (m)
u Superelevation (m)
k  Horizontal curvature (1/m)
k  Vertical curvature (1/m)
g Gravitational acceleration (9,81 m/s2)
a Resultant tangential acceleration (m/s2)
W Longitudinal slope
l Horizontal length of road
The equation (5) can be edited for horizontal geometry. The equation of Lateral Jerk for
horizontal geometry (kD: 0) is as follows:

Z =

bV

u + b 

3
 +  

d
k  V  u
 
d
+ 

+

 (6)
d
u + b

  +
 d

TS06G - Engineering Surveying, Machine Control and Guidance, 5563

Ahmet Sami KILIN and Tamer BAYBURA
Determination of Minimum Horizontal Curve Radius Used in the Design of Transportation Structures,
Depending on the Limit Value of Comfort Criterion Lateral Jerk
FIG Working Week 2012
Knowing to manage the territory, protect the environment, evaluate the cultural heritage
Rome, Italy, 6-10 May 2012

4/11

The value of kY in the equation (6) represents the curvature of horizontal geometry at any
point. kY is equal to the value of (1/ry). (Baykal, 2009)

=

1
7


In the equation (7), the value of rY is radius of horizontal geometry curvature. On the
horizontal curves, radius of horizontal geometry curvature (ry) is equal to horizontal curve
radius.
In the equation (6), minimum curve radius based on the lateral Jerk criterion was obtained
using 1/r instead of k  . The derivatives of the superelevation and radius of curvature with
respect to distance are zero.
R
 =

3 V
 a b

u + b  Z

(8)

In the equation (8), the expression of u + b  (sloping width of road platform) can be equal
to the value of horizontal width of road platform (b).
For highways; equation of minimum curve radius based on the lateral Jerk is as follows:
R
 =

3V
 a
(9)
Z

For railways; equation of minimum curve radius based on the lateral Jerk is as follows:
R
 =

3V
 b  u
 a
(10)
b Z

Where;
u
 Maximum superelevation (m), b : Width of the railway line (m)
According to American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials
(AASHTO; 2001) standards values of Lateral Jerk ranging from 0,3 to 0,9 m/s3 have been
used for highways. Some literature values of lateral Jerk are as follows:
For highways; Zy = 0,6 m/s3 (for residential areas), Zy = 0,3 m/s3 (for rural highways)
(Schofield; 2001), Zy = 0,6 m/s3 (Umar; Yayla; 1997), Zy = 0,6 m/s3 (Uren; Price; 1985),
Zy = 0,5 m/s3 (Manns; 1985).
For Railways; Zy = 0,5 m/s3 (Megyeri; 1993), Zy = 0,2 m/s3 (Esveld; 1989), Zy = 0,4 m/s3
(Frstberg; 2000), Zy = 0,5 m/s3 (Evren; 2002).
TS06G - Engineering Surveying, Machine Control and Guidance, 5563
Ahmet Sami KILIN and Tamer BAYBURA
Determination of Minimum Horizontal Curve Radius Used in the Design of Transportation Structures,
Depending on the Limit Value of Comfort Criterion Lateral Jerk
FIG Working Week 2012
Knowing to manage the territory, protect the environment, evaluate the cultural heritage
Rome, Italy, 6-10 May 2012

5/11

3. NUMERICAL APPLICATION
Based on the different criterion (Lateral Jerk, lateral acceleration, superelevation), table 1
gives the minimum curve radius from 20 to 130 km/h for highways and table 2 gives the
minimum curve radius from 20 to 250 km/h for railways.
Minimum curve radius based on lateral Jerk value from 0.3 to 0.9 m/s3, minimum curve
radius based on superelevation value and minimum curve radius based on lateral acceleration
value are given in table 1 for highways.
In table 2 minimum curve radius based on lateral Jerk value from 0.3 to 0.6 m/s3 and
minimum curve radius based on the other criterion are given for railways.
In the tables;
Rmin : Minimum curve radius
Zy: Lateral Jerk, Zy: 0.3-0.9 m/s3 (AASHTO, 2001)
ay: Lateral acceleration, ay: 1.47 m/s2 for highways (German RAL Guide)
ay: 0.65 m/s2 for railways (Megyeri; 1993).
e: Superelevation, e: %4 (AASHTO,2001)
umax: Maximum superelevation, umax: 0.15 m (Baykal, 2009)

Rmin (m)
V
(Km/h)
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
110
120
130

Zy (m/s3)
Zy: 0.3
115
170
225
280
335
390
445
500
560
615
670
725

Zy: 0.4
85
125
170
210
250
300
335
375
420
460
500
725

Zy: 0.5
70
100
135
170
200
235
270
300
335
370
400
435

Zy: 0.6
60
85
115
140
170
195
225
250
280
310
335
365

Zy: 0.7
50
75
100
120
145
170
195
215
240
265
290
310

Zy: 0.8
45
65
85
105
125
150
170
190
210
230
250
275

Zy: 0.9
40
60
75
95
115
170
150
170
190
205
225
245

ay (m/s2)

e (%)

ay: 1.47

e: 4
15
35
60
100
150
215
280
375
495
635
875
1110

15
35
55
85
125
170
220
280
345
415
495
580

Table 1: Minimum horizontal curve radius for highways

TS06G - Engineering Surveying, Machine Control and Guidance, 5563

Ahmet Sami KILIN and Tamer BAYBURA
Determination of Minimum Horizontal Curve Radius Used in the Design of Transportation Structures,
Depending on the Limit Value of Comfort Criterion Lateral Jerk
FIG Working Week 2012
Knowing to manage the territory, protect the environment, evaluate the cultural heritage
Rome, Italy, 6-10 May 2012

6/11

Rmin (m)
V
(Km/h)

Zy ( m/s3)
Zy: 0.3
110
165
225
280
335
390
445
500
555
610
665
720
775
885
995
1105
1220
1382

20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
110
120
130
140
160
180
200
220
250

Zy: 0.4
85
125
165
210
250
290
335
375
415
460
500
540
580
665
750
830
915
1040

Zy: 0.5
70
100
135
165
200
235
265
300
335
365
400
435
465
530
600
665
730
830

Zy: 0.6
55
85
110
140
165
195
225
250
280
305
335
360
390
445
500
555
610
690

ay (m/s2)

umax (m)

ay: 0.65

umax : 0.15
35
70
125
195
285
385
500
635
785
950
1130
1325
1535
2005
2535
3135
3790
4890

20
45
75
120
170
230
305
385
470
570
680
795
925
1205
1525
1885
2280
2945

Table 2: Minimum horizontal curve radius for railways

V : 20-130 km/h
0,9

0,8

Lateral Jerk

0,7
0,6

80 100

120

60
40

0,5

20

0,4

0,3
0

100

200

300

400

500

600

700

800

Minimum Curve Radius (m)

Graphic 1: Minimum horizontal curve radius depends on the lateral Jerk for highways
TS06G - Engineering Surveying, Machine Control and Guidance, 5563
Ahmet Sami KILIN and Tamer BAYBURA
Determination of Minimum Horizontal Curve Radius Used in the Design of Transportation Structures,
Depending on the Limit Value of Comfort Criterion Lateral Jerk
FIG Working Week 2012
Knowing to manage the territory, protect the environment, evaluate the cultural heritage
Rome, Italy, 6-10 May 2012

7/11

V : 20-250 km/h

Lateral Jerk

0,6

0,5
250
220
180

0,4

140

200

160

100
70
50
20

0,3
0

100 200 300 400 500 600 700 800 900 1000 1100 1200 1300 1400
Minimum Curve Radius (m)

Graphic 2: Minimum horizontal curve radius depends on the lateral Jerk for railways.

For Highways:
1. Z: 0.3 m/s3 , V: 0-100 km/h  >  > 
V: 100-130 km/h  >  > 

 : Minimum curve radius based on Lateral Jerk value (m)

 : Minimum curve radius based on superelevation value (m)
 : Minimum curve radius based on Lateral acceleration value (m)
For safety and comfort, designing horizontal curve radius to take into account lateral Jerk for
design speeds from 0 to100 km/h is more acceptable than the others. For design speeds from
100 to130 km/h, Re must be used.
2. Z: 0.5 m/s3 , V: 0-70 km/h  >  > 
V: 70-90 km/h  >  > 
V: 100-130 km/h  >  > 
For design speeds from 0 to 70 km/h, RZ must be used.
For design speeds from 70 to130 km/h, Re must be used.

TS06G - Engineering Surveying, Machine Control and Guidance, 5563

Ahmet Sami KILIN and Tamer BAYBURA
Determination of Minimum Horizontal Curve Radius Used in the Design of Transportation Structures,
Depending on the Limit Value of Comfort Criterion Lateral Jerk
FIG Working Week 2012
Knowing to manage the territory, protect the environment, evaluate the cultural heritage
Rome, Italy, 6-10 May 2012

8/11

3. Z: 0.7 m/s3 , V: 0-50 km/h  >  > 

V: 50-70 km/h  >  > 
V: 80-130 km/h  >  > 
For design speeds from 0 to 50 km/h, RZ must be used.
For design speeds from 50 to130 km/h, Re must be used.
For Railways:
1. Z: 0.3 m/s3 , V: 0-70 km/h  >  > 
V: 80-110 km/h  >  > 
V: 110-250 km/h  >  > 

 : Minimum curve radius based on Lateral Jerk value (m)

 : Minimum curve radius based on superelevation value (m)
 : Minimum curve radius based on Lateral acceleration value (m)
2. Z: 0.4 m/s3 , V: 0-50 km/h  >  > 
V: 50-80 km/h  >  > 
V: 90-250 km/h  >  > 
3. Z: 0.5 m/s3 , V: 0-40 km/h  >  > 
V: 50-70 km/h  >  > 
V: 70-250 km/h  >  > 

During the design of horizontal curve, the biggest radius calculated with respect to different
criteria must be used for comfortable designing.
4. CONCLUSION
Horizontal and vertical curves used in transportation systems are the critical sections on the
alignment. An important issue to be addressed in order to increase road safety and comfort
during the design of horizontal and vertical curves is determination of the minimum curve
radius affected by many factors. In this study as distinct from similar studies, minimum curve
radius used as design criterion on the design of horizontal geometry of alignment was
calculated to take into consideration lateral Jerk criterion. The equations of minimum curve
radius based on lateral Jerk were derived from the equations of lateral Jerk in the literature.
Minimum curve radius calculated according to different values of jerk was compared to
minimum curve radius calculated according to other methods and the results were interpreted
in terms of road safety and comfort. The biggest minimum curve radius calculated with
respect to different criterion could be used for the design of comfortable and safety highways
and railways.
TS06G - Engineering Surveying, Machine Control and Guidance, 5563
Ahmet Sami KILIN and Tamer BAYBURA
Determination of Minimum Horizontal Curve Radius Used in the Design of Transportation Structures,
Depending on the Limit Value of Comfort Criterion Lateral Jerk
FIG Working Week 2012
Knowing to manage the territory, protect the environment, evaluate the cultural heritage
Rome, Italy, 6-10 May 2012

9/11

REFERENCES
AASHTO; (2001): A Policy on Geometric Design of Highways and Streets, American
Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials, Washington DC, USA.
Baybura T. ; (2001): The Investigation of the Effect of the Vertical Alignment Geometry on
the Lateral Change of Acceleration (in Turkish), PhD Thesis, stanbul Technical University,
stanbul.
Baykal O. ; (1996): On Concept of Lateral Change of Acceleration, ASCE, Journal of
Surveying Engineering, Vol.122, No.3, 132-141.
Baykal O. ; (2009): Engineering Surveying-1 Design and Application of Highway and
Railway Alignment Geometry (in Turkish), Birsen Yaynevi, stanbul.
Esvelt C. ; (1989): Modern Railway Track, Graphics Department of Thyssen Stahl A. G.,
Duisburg, Germany.
Evren G. ; (2002): Railway (in Turkish), Birsen Yaynevi, stanbul.
Frstberg J. ; (200): Ride Comfort and Motion Sickness in Tilting Trains, PhD thesis,
Department of Vehicle Engineering, Royal Institute of Technology, Stockholm, Sweden.
Megyeri I. ; (1993): Eisenbahn Bewegungsgeometrie, Akademiai Kiado, Jeno, Hungary.
Schofield, W. ; (2001): Engineering Surveying Theory and Examination Problems for
Students, Butterworth-Heinemann, Oxford, New Delhi.
Schot, S.H. ; (1978): The Time Rate of Change of Acceleration, American Journal of Physics,
Vol. 46, No. 11, 1090-1094.
Umar F. ; Yayla N. ; (1997): Construction of Road (in Turkish), 5th edition, stanbul Teknik
niversitesi, No.1588, stanbul.
Uren, J. ; Price, W. ; (2006): Surveying for Engineers, 4th edition, Palgrave Macmillan, New
York, USA.

TS06G - Engineering Surveying, Machine Control and Guidance, 5563

Ahmet Sami KILIN and Tamer BAYBURA
Determination of Minimum Horizontal Curve Radius Used in the Design of Transportation Structures,
Depending on the Limit Value of Comfort Criterion Lateral Jerk
FIG Working Week 2012
Knowing to manage the territory, protect the environment, evaluate the cultural heritage
Rome, Italy, 6-10 May 2012

10/1
1

BIOGRAPHICAL NOTES
Ahmet Sami KILIN was born in 1986 at Ankara/Turkey. He is a Research Assistant at
Uak University, Turkey. He graduated from the Department of Geodesy and
Photogrammetry Engineering at Afyon Kocatepe University in 2009. He is MSc student and
currently study on his MSc thesis. His MSc thesis is about highway and railway horizontal
geometry. His research interests are Engineering Surveying, GPS and its applications,
Highways and Railways Alignment Geometry, Deformation Measurements and Analysis.
Tamer BAYBURA was born in 1966 at Sulz am Neckar/Germany. In 1991 he graduated
from The University of Selcuk; Department of Engineering and Architecture Faculty as a
Geodesy and Photogrammetry Engineer. He finished his M.Sc. in 1994 at Graduate School of
Natural and Applied Sciences that is within The University of Selcuk in Konya/Turkey. His
PhD completed in 2001 at Graduate School of Natural and Applied Sciences that is within
The Technical University of Istanbul. He worked as an research assistant in The University of
Selcuk; Department of Engineering and Architecture Faculty between 1992 and 2000.
Continuing from 2000, and current to date, he is working as Assistant Professor in Afyon
Kocatepe University; Department of Engineering Faculty. Baybura has many studies on the
area like highway and railway alignment geometry and deformation measurements and
analysis.

CONTACTS
Ahmet Sami KILIN
Uak University
Bir Eyll Campus
Engineering Faculty, Department of Geomatics Engineering
64200 Uak
TURKEY
Tel. +90 276 221 2136
Fax +90 276 221 2137
Email: sami.kilinc@usak.edu.tr

TS06G - Engineering Surveying, Machine Control and Guidance, 5563

Ahmet Sami KILIN and Tamer BAYBURA
Determination of Minimum Horizontal Curve Radius Used in the Design of Transportation Structures,
Depending on the Limit Value of Comfort Criterion Lateral Jerk
FIG Working Week 2012
Knowing to manage the territory, protect the environment, evaluate the cultural heritage
Rome, Italy, 6-10 May 2012

11/1
1